Working to save nation’s future

Published: Friday, October 25, 2013 at 12:18 PM.

In a study released Monday by the Opportunity Nation coalition, a sobering glimpse emerged of what the America of tomorrow might be.

Among those ages 16 to 24 years old, nearly 6 million — almost 15 percent — are no longer pursuing an education. Unfortunately, they also do not have jobs.

The Opportunity Nation report tracked 16 factors — Internet access, college graduation rates, income inequality and public safety among them — and identified states that were doing well for their young people.

According to its website, “Opportunity Nation is a bipartisan, cross-sector national campaign made up of more than 250 nonprofits, businesses, educational institutions, faith-based organizations, community organizations and individuals all working together to expand economic opportunity and close the opportunity gap in America.”

That gap is increasingly hard to close, the report shows. Its findings indicate 49 states — that’s all of them save one — have seen an increase in the number of families living in poverty. And 45 states have seen household median incomes fall in the last year.

The executive director of Opportunity Nation says it is not too late to turn things around, however.

“This is not a group that we can write off. They just need a chance,” Mark Edwards said in a story published by the Associated Press. “The tendency is to see them as lost souls and see them as unsavable. They are not.”

So, what is to be done?

Partnerships are the key to turning the corner, according to Opportunity Nation’s website. Its Take Action page offers users the tools to search for organizations by state and by area of interest or concern. Among the partners listed are the American Association of Community Colleges, Community Action Partnership, Feeding America, Habitat for Humanity and United Way Worldwide.

Let’s work together to get our young people on a better, brighter path.

A version of this editorial first appeared in the Gadsden Times, a Halifax Media Group newspaper in Alabama.

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In a study released Monday by the Opportunity Nation coalition, a sobering glimpse emerged of what the America of tomorrow might be.

Among those ages 16 to 24 years old, nearly 6 million — almost 15 percent — are no longer pursuing an education. Unfortunately, they also do not have jobs.

The Opportunity Nation report tracked 16 factors — Internet access, college graduation rates, income inequality and public safety among them — and identified states that were doing well for their young people.

According to its website, “Opportunity Nation is a bipartisan, cross-sector national campaign made up of more than 250 nonprofits, businesses, educational institutions, faith-based organizations, community organizations and individuals all working together to expand economic opportunity and close the opportunity gap in America.”

That gap is increasingly hard to close, the report shows. Its findings indicate 49 states — that’s all of them save one — have seen an increase in the number of families living in poverty. And 45 states have seen household median incomes fall in the last year.

The executive director of Opportunity Nation says it is not too late to turn things around, however.

“This is not a group that we can write off. They just need a chance,” Mark Edwards said in a story published by the Associated Press. “The tendency is to see them as lost souls and see them as unsavable. They are not.”

So, what is to be done?

Partnerships are the key to turning the corner, according to Opportunity Nation’s website. Its Take Action page offers users the tools to search for organizations by state and by area of interest or concern. Among the partners listed are the American Association of Community Colleges, Community Action Partnership, Feeding America, Habitat for Humanity and United Way Worldwide.

Let’s work together to get our young people on a better, brighter path.

A version of this editorial first appeared in the Gadsden Times, a Halifax Media Group newspaper in Alabama.